Lug strap



July 20, 17948. 1 E, MQ 2,445,744

LUG STRAP Filed Dec. 26, 1946 Patented July zo, 194s LUG STRAP J. Edgar Moe, Danielson, Conn., .assignor to Jacobs Rubber Products, Incorporated, Danielson, Conn., a corporation of Connecticut Application December 26,1946, Serial No. 718,566

4 Claims. l

My present invention is a novel and improved lug strap for use to actuate the picker sticks in looms, and includes a novel method of manufacturing the same.

In modern loom construction, the shuttle carrying the filling is thrown back and forth thru the warp threads widthwise by a picker stick, and such picker stick is actuated on its power stroke thru a lug strap. Such lug strap also aids in checking the return movement of the shuttle and, consequently, of the picker stick. rIvhe picker stick thus oscillates back and forth thru the length of such lug strap which encircles a part of the picker stick. Consequently lug 4straps are subjected toa great deal of wear and shock, both during the power stroke when the Vshuttle is being thrown, and to the shuttle-receiving operation when the picker stick is thrust backwardly by the impact of the return of the shuttle when thrown from the opposite side of the loom.

A further difficulty because of the free traveling shuttle is that the picker stick is apt to be impelled from side to side somewhat, causing Wear on the side arms .of the lug strap and, thus, the strains, stresses, shocks, and wear are disaligned tending to wear out, injure, and damage the lug straps.

The picker stick swinging in an arc from a pivot point, and the lug strap traveling in a substantially horizontal line, create a still further difculty of strain upon the strap.

Heretofore, lug straps have been made of metal. wood` canvas, leather, and rubber but none and a resilient or yielding portion where such material is of most benefit in a lug strap. Thus, I provide a `metal portion for the forward or open ends of the side arms where the attaching bolt to the power-actuating means is made, together with a resilient section for contact with the picker stick. Also, my novel and improved construction provides means to take up widthwise twists, strains, or shocks caused by the necessarily free traveling shuttle and the oscillating picker stick.

I also provide a solid reinforcing back for the vpicker stick resilient element to thus prevent too much resilience or loss of power or timing in the lug strap action. Also, I thus provide automatic means to effect the whip or spring of the picker stick in its power stroke and to insure uniformity in the entire loom and weaving operations, while Y absorbing all strains, blows, and stresses lengthhave proven suiciently wear-resistant to be satisfactory.. Too much resiliency causes a loss of power between the power and the picker-stick throwing operation; while the forward arms of.

the lug strap being bolted to a sweepstick or other power-actuating link causes undue wear and o breakage on these various prior materials.

My presentinvntion is directed to obviate the difcultiesiabove briefly outlined,and to provide Ihave discovered thatA I can combine ayieldf wise and widthwise incurred by the lug strap during the loom operations.

My invention is of special importance in the high-speed and heavy looms used today and permits increased speed of operations with safety and uniformity.

In carrying out my present invention, I provide an interlocked set of side arms and a reinforced metal backing element around the U- shaped portion of the lug strap, together with an intermediate layer, or layers, of resilient material, vulcanized or otherwise interlocked with the metal sidearms yand U-shaped portions, the resilient element beingthus reinforced and cooperating with the metallic or non-resilient portions wherein each is constructed, arranged, and

. cooperating to perform a most desirable combination.

For the non-resilient material, I may use metal, wood, plastic, magnesium, aluminum, thin iron, or any light, strong, wear-resistant alloy. For the resilient element, I may use synthetic plasticsrubber, synthetic rubbers, or combinations thereof, suitable rubber compounds, or the like, of proper consistency to effect the limited resilience needed for shuttle-throwing and -receiving operations thru the picker stick.

By overlapping the metal sidearms and the U- shaped, portion, I produce a strong, compact, streamlined, and serviceable combination of interlocked metal and resilient portions, thus givinglelementgwith a non-yielding element, or eiements, and a method of uniting the vsame whereby my improved lug strap has a. wear-resisting metallic portion where the same is most needed,

ing a universal yielding lengthwise and'widthlwise and, hence, shock-absorption and wear-resistance; while the metallic portions take up the power-actuating wear and reinforce the non-metallic portions.

My novel lug strap is, preferably, made by a novelvmethod of manufacture which consists in interlocking the molded resilient element with the overlapping metallic members, and a wearresisting plug at the base or bottom of the U- shaped metal portion, which are all welded together by a vulcanizing process and, thus, in ef fect, results in a so-called lfloating" construction between the metal portions thru the non-metal` lic portions.

My method and construction also effects an interlocking of the plug at the hee1 of the lug strap without rivets, saving expense and giving a smooth, streamlined outer surface.

Referring to the drawings illustrating a preierred embodiment made by my novel method:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view; j

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view, and

Fig. 3 is a cross-sectional view on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2.

Referring to the drawings, the side arm elements of any suitable metal, wood, or alloy are designated at I and 2, each having bolt holes or slots therethru, as shown at 3 and 4 for attachment to the sweepstick or power-actuating link. The U-shaped element 5 is formed with suflicient length to its sldearms land 8 to overlap the arms I and 2, as shown. A resilient material I0 is molded to fit between and space the overlapping portions I and 2 and of those 1 and 8 of the U- shaped metal element 5, and are suitably bonded together to each metal element by vulcanizing or otherwise.

Also, I provide a picker stick receiving plug I2, preferably fitted into shouldered recesses I4 and I5 adjacent the rear part of the resilient element I8, which plug may be of any suitable composition, preferably interrolled canvas, fiber, or the like, with an impregnation or coating of the same material as the resilient element I0 so that it also will be vulcanized simultaneously with the operation uniting both resilient and metal elements together.

Preferably, also, I form a thin coating28 on the inside portion of the metallic arms I and 2 which will protect the picker stick and metal arms from longitudinal rubbing contact during the oscillatingoperation of the picker stick relatively with the lug strap.

Thus it will be appreciated that my present invention produces a strong, light, and flrm lug strap construction, with metallic elements where needed, and resilient elements most serviceable to effect the automatic and 4relatively slight yielding action between the picker stick and the lug strap, both lengthwise and widthwise, taking up and absorbing shocks, stresses, strains, and twisting actions, the resilient and non-resilient elements cooperating with, protecting, and reinforcing each other.

To provide a further streamlining operation, I prefer to form the forwardedge portions of the yielding element on an angle or bevel, shown at 2I2I to protect the end edges of the arms 1 and 8 on the U-shaped metallic portion 5, thus still further effecting a streamlining contour.

While Iprefer to Autilize thin metal or an alloy,

as above explained, for the reinforcing and non' resilient elements, I may utilize, also, any other suitable material which is relatively non-yielding or inflexible in comparison with the inner yielding or flexible material. Thus I could' use different types of hard wear-resisting plastic compressed or treated wood, plywood, or the like. Therefore, I wish to claim herein the novel lug strap construction and method of making same which includes the relatively non-yielding elements bonded together with relatively yielding elements into U-shaped form to constitute a lug strap composed of flexible and inflexible elements for the purpose described. f"

Furthermore, this novel combination and method of making same enables me to firmly interlock the picker stick-receiving plug in the heel of the lug strap without rivets or other fastenings, the plug being bondedwith the yielding, resilient, orv flexible element in the structure. This advantage of a rivetless but firmly held plug in the Aheel saves expense, enables the plug to be worn evenly throughout its entire extent; whereas formerly the position of the rivets would limit the usefulness of the plug. This rivetless construction also enables me to utilize an attractive, smooth, streamlined design.

I claim:

1. A lug strap of the kind described, comprising a pair of arms formed with bolt slots and a metallic U-shaped portion overlapping said metal arm portions, combined with a resilient portion separating said overlapped metallic portions.

2. A lug strap of the kind described, comprising a pair of arms formed with bolt slots and a separate metallic U-shaped portion spaced from and overlapping sali metal .arm portions, combined with a resilien. element separating from each other and bonding together said overlapped metallic portions, said resilient element extending around the inner .lrface of the U-shaped metallic portion.

3. A lug strap of the kind described, comprising a pair of extending arms, a U-shaped portion overlapping a part of said arms, a resilient element bonded to both saidv arms and the U-shaped portion, and enclosing a plug at the heel end of the strap.

4. A lug strap of the kind described, consisting in the combination of a relatively yielding flexible element, and relatively non-yielding inflexible elements bonded together in U-shaped contour, one of said inilexible elements extending around the heel portion of the U-shaped contour, and enclosing and protecting the yielding sheets or strips for the members I, 2, and 8,.,or`

element bonded thereto, and a pair of extending inflexible elements constituting a portion of the arms lof the lug strap bonded in spaced relation to said U-shaped element by the resilient element.

J. EDGAR MOE.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the ille of this patent:

Gross July 18, 1944 f 

